If you’re interested in serving on either the Guthrie City Council or Guthrie Public Schools Board of Education, you will have your chance to begin that process coming up next month.
Along with GPS, Coyle, Crescent and Mulhall will have school board seats up for election.
Candidates interested in filing for municipal office or school board will file Declarations of Candidacy beginning at 8 a.m. Monday, December 5.
Sheleen Winscott, Secretary of the Logan County Election Board, said forms must be completed and submitted to the County Election Board no later than 5 p.m. Wednesday, December 7 when the filing period ends.
For the City of Guthrie, the Mayor’s (Steve Gentling) seat along with one council member from each ward, including 1 (James Long), 2 (Brian Bothroyd), and 3 (Don Channel) are up for election.
The mayor term is a two-year term while the council positions are four-year terms.
The names of the two candidates for each office receiving the greatest number of votes at the primary election held on February 14, 2023, will be placed on the general election ballot. In the event that only two candidates file for a specific office, their names will be placed on the general election ballot.
Candidate qualifications include being a citizen of the United States, 21 years of age or older, must be a registered voter, must be a resident of the City of Guthrie for two years immediately preceding the date of the general election, or a resident of an area which has been annexed to and has become a part of the City of Guthrie for two years immediately preceding the general election, be a resident of the ward the candidate seeks to represent, in case of candidates filing for the office of councilman and file a Declaration of Candidacy.
For the Guthrie school board, Ward 5 (currently held by Tina Smedley) is up for election. All candidates must live within the same ward.
Declarations of Candidacy will also be accepted for Coyle (Office No. 3) a 5-year term, Crescent (Office No. 3) a 5-year term, and Mulhall-Orlando (Office No. 3) a 5-year term.
For school board positions, if more than two candidates file for the same vacant position, a Primary Election will be held Tuesday, February, 14. If one candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, that candidate will be named the elected official. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes will vie for the vacant position during the General Election, on April 4. If only two candidates file for the same vacant position, those two candidates’ names will appear on the General Election ballot in April.
Winscott reminds voters that Contests of Candidacy must be filed no later than Friday, December 9, and may only be filed by another candidate for that office, unless a candidate files unopposed.
The Logan County Election Board is located at 224 E. Vilas Ave., Guthrie, OK 73044, and is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
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